Royal Companion
by kuroraikounokami
Summary: She, a princess from a small kingdom with the weight of her country on her shoulders, wishes for more freedom. He, a man who's life has gotten a bit boring, wishes for a change to happen. She calls to the universe to deliver her someone to converse with. He answers the call for a new adventure. Will he be able to give her what she wants?
1. New Chance At Happiness

**Royal Companion**

**She, a princess from a small kingdom with the weight of her country on her shoulders, wishes for more freedom. He, a man who's life has gotten a bit boring, wishes for a change to happen. She calls to the universe to deliver her someone to converse with. He answers the call for a new adventure. Will he be able to give her what she wants?**

**The sky sees the truth**

**The shadows the secrets**

* * *

**I do not own the Familiar of Zero.**

* * *

Chapter One: New Chance At Happiness

_"What ever you desire, will be my pleasure."_

_- Marcel_

* * *

Cold. Cold and wet with a mix of excitement. That was the current feeling for one Henrietta. A woman whose beauty, kindness and generosity had earned her the love and devotion of her subjects. This woman of royal blood stood soaking wet. Her clothing, a white sheer nightie and white silk panties, clung to her body matching its shape. The thicker material of the nightie's cups covered her breast. She stood in the rain barefoot several yards away from her castle out of sight from the guards and prying eyes. Since the form of her body could be seen, the obscuring rain was a blessing. The reason she stood in this torrent was a simple reason that not many would understand. She wished to summon a familiar.

The reason began as a simple wish. That wish was to be able to speak freely to a trusted friend, something the many servants or her mother could not provide. A short time before, her father was such a person. He would listen to her speak of her days playing with her childhood playmate Louise. A daughter to a duke, that would come to the castle for business and would bring his daughter on occasions. O how they would get dirty playing in the court yard and get into mischief in the kitchen taking sweets before afternoon tea. Such fun were those times.

But all those days ended the day her father died. He was the king to the country of Tristain one of the countries of Halkeginia. In his death she would take the mantle as queen. A title her mother would relinquish, for she could not rule without her husband. Even if she would be queen, she was to young, so a substitute ruler would need to be in place. The individual given such a task was Cardinal Mazarin the regent of Tristain. Even so the country was weak in terms of military strength. In order to defend themselves the princess would have to marry their neighbor Germania in order to cement an alliance.

Henrietta did not want to marry another just for the benefit of her country but she knew that as a royal she must do everything to defend her citizens. These circumstances are what lead her to perform these actions. If she were to marry a stranger out of duty, then she will have loyal company with her. The idea came to her while she was getting ready for bed, for this is the reason she is not wearing much in the sense of clothing.

The rain also provided a sense of liberation and she would enjoy it while it lasted. It washed away her worries and cleared her mind of negative thoughts. If she could, she would dance in the water only to feel free from the heavy weight of the crown. Like a river, it would float her heavy burdens away.

Getting herself ready she took her scepter straighten her arm at chest level and began to recite her spell.

**"Power of the universe. May you chose a spirit to guide me in life. To protect me from the evil of the world. To hear me speak from the heart. Let it be the one to follow me until the eternal sleep. I Henrietta de Tristain call forth my familiar.**

With the words spoken, the world seemed to change from a simple rain shower to a raging storm. The clouds darkened further, as lightning danced across the sky. Its dance of death tantalized mortal man with its beauty, terrorized the weaker man with its power. A single bolt separated from the others, crashing before the princess. The action was so fast that she had but a second cover her gaze before she was blinded.

She knew this was not part of the spell. The spell she had seen used countless of times would materialize a portal and an animal would step forth. In an after thought, she was glad the she did this outside or her room at the castle would suffer a lot of damage which she would have to explain. As she continued to cover her eyes she could feel the electricity in the air. Her wet hair began to arc with small amounts of static mankind her scalp tingle. She giggled at the feeling of the electricity caressing her body from head to toe. The feeling didn't last long, the blinding light faded and for a moment no sound could be heard. That did not last long before thunder struck, its boom cause Henrietta's body vibrate violently and her eardrums rupture. She heard herself scream for only a moment before only a high pitch noise resonated in her head. Losing her balance she fell to her knees and toppling over into the mud. Consciousness was leaving her and she could not stop it.

Before she passed out, she saw the silhouette of what she summoned. All she saw was that it was human and that its eyes glowed silver. She tried to speak but could not hear her own speech only feel the vibrations of her vocal chords. Then darkness took her.

**(Summons's POV)**

_I truly didn't expect this to happen. When I felt the familiar pull of a summons, I thought someone wanted a job to be done so I let myself go with the flow. I was dragged through the dimension gate, a portal that would take me to any world I wished. I used my power to command lightning to make the trip a little more pleasant since ones body tends to get hurt by the uncontrolled tumbling. I crashed at the site where the summoning was being performed. Safe to say, I didn't expect to see a young woman in front of me. Most of my summoners tended to be older people wishing for a quick and dirty job. By the way the rain was pouring as well as the way she was dressed I thought it must have been an emergency for to summon me in this storm._

_The light of the lightning bolt I rode in faded to reveal her covering her face with her arms protecting herself from the blinding light. I thought it was rather cute until the roaring sound of the thunder chasing the lightning decided to grace me with its booming voice. I was not bothered by the heavy feeling as the air crashed into me in waves, causing me to close my eyes due to the mud it flung around. The same could not be said about the girl who's scream reached my ears filling me with worry. I looked before me to see the woman laying on the ground, struggling to to stay conscious I knew it was useless. I walked over to her, our eyes meeting briefly before she passed out._

_I knelt over her prone form, analyzing her condition, looking for any injuries that may have occurred during her tumble. The first thing I saw were her bleeding ears, this told me that her eardrums ruptured due to the concussive force from the thunderclap. Another thing I saw were the scrapes to her arms, legs and face. Her breathing was erratic and the groaning was not helping my nerves. This was the first time someone accidentally got hurt by my arrival which didn't sit well with me. Knowing she needed medical attention soon, I decide to help her the only way I could._

_Standing up I raised my hand to the air, the space above us shimmered and rippled. In mere moments a black box like object descended covering us completely. This would protect us from the rain and let me heal her without interference. Our bodies passed through the floor with no resistance. With that done I got to work._

*****Scene Break*****

She could not remember what happened to her. All she knew was that her body was in pain and her head hurt like the day she drank to much wine. Her eyes fluttered open but winced them closed mere seconds later. She was a little light sensitive at the moment not to mention groggy. She began rubbed her face to get the sand out of her eyes when she heard the sound of footsteps. Turning to the source of the sound the young princess saw a tall man walking towards her with a relaxed step. She tried to remember where she had seen him, but couldn't. Trying to sit up she felt the sensation of the sheets that covered her body fall away exposing her breasts. Looking down she could see she wore nothing underneath and in a panic grabbed the sheets tightly over her form. She wasn't embarrassed by her lack of modesty, it just caught her by surprise. The man stopped at her bed side and knelt at eye level in order prevent himself from seeing more than what the young woman wanted. Henrietta looked into his eyes and saw they were silver. This brought back many memories, one of which was her ruptured eardrums. Her right hand darted to her right ear and felt it was perfectly fine even the sound of the sheets ruffling as she moved was a good sign.

"Don't worry your in perfect health. The pain is quiet normal from the damage you have suffered and your hearing should be fine." He spoke in a calm soothing voice letting it relax her a bit. "Can you tell me who you are and why you have summoned me?"

'Summoned?' she thought. Then she remembered she had wanted to summon a familiar to keep her company if she were to be forced to marry and live in a foreign nation. The fact that her summoning was human and a man surprised her since only animals would have appeared. It was a brief moment of confusion until realization hit her hard reminding her of her headache. Since her summoning brought her a human she could talk to him and he would listen holding a conversation with her. This way she would not have to be alone.

Knowing he would was waiting for her she answer "Indeed I have summoned you and my name is Henrietta de Tristain." She spoke in a strong voice no hesitation in her words. She was not on edge about the whole ordeal of being in a foreign room with a man while lying in bed completely naked, but the reason could have been that he was looking straight into her eyes. "And what would be your name?"

He continued to look at her light blue eyes before he answer "My name is Marcel. I'm glad that you're okay. Its seems my summoning caused you harm and for that I am sorry." The newly identified Marcel bowed his head still looking at the woman in the eyes. He would not look anywhere else so as to not upset her. Henrietta saw genuine concern in his features and that brought a bit of happiness to her heart. Remembering where she was she asked how she got here. "At the time of my summoning I saw you pass out so I brought you to this space where I could heal you and keep you safe until you awoke." Standing to his full height he walked to a small table where a pitcher of water and a glass rested.

Taking the time to study the individual, Henrietta saw his clothing's colors consisted of black and silver. He was wearing a tight plain black shirt, black pants with various straps on his hips and black leather boots with a silver buckle covered by his pant legs. On his chest dangled a silver chain with a pendant the looked like broken wings with a lightning bolt between them. His hair was pitch black in a certain light, and almost silver on another. The eyes were the color of pure platinum with his overall expression set in the same fierce look that the Captain of her Musketeer Corps. His look was somewhat reminiscent of a knight without armor or weapon. She wondered what his clothing was made from since the material was not familiar to her.

Filling the glass he walked back to her side and offered it to her. "I am surprise you summoned me in such a setting as that storm. Couldn't you have chosen a better location?"

Taking the glass while giving a thank you she drank the cool water. "I didn't plan the summoning. It was a spur of the moment thing. To tell you the truth I wanted to summon a familiar to keep me company so as I laid in bed thinking about it I just acted on that desire." She smiled at the thought that her desire got her into trouble again like when she was little. "I raced outside with excitement at what would appear not thinking of what could happen." She stayed quite reminiscing until she wondered something. "How were you able to heal me? Are you a noble?"

He wondered why she would think he was a noble since many other creatures could heal others. "Noble?" his confusion showed on his face.

"Yes, a noble. A human being with magical abilities." She wondered why it was confusing him since only a noble could heal someone without the aid of a potion.

Marcel was quietly thinking, sometime passed until he asked for an explanation. Her explanation was short but it would seem that here, where ever here was, a person who could use magic was a noble and a noble was a mage. Still what would make a person who could not use magic. Either way there was plenty of time to find out. He was about to tell her how he healed her when he remembered she said something about a familiar. "Familiar, as in an animal or other creature that lives with a mage as a servant." He knew that most mages and witches summoned familiars although witches tended to have cats more often than not.

Henrietta was happy that this man knew what a familiar was and what it entitled. She would not need to explain it to him but still she wondered if he was a noble for if he was than she could not bind him to her. That would cause conflict between his family and the kingdom.

As if reading her mind the man before her answered her question. "For your previous question I am not a noble and to answer the question you didn't ask I healed you by infusing your body with my natural energy giving you in a sense the power to regenerate for as long as the energy courses through you." He waited for the information to sink in. "Do you have any other questions?"

At first the young princess was shocked that she believe he read her mind but then she remembered that she asked if he was a noble. If she asked then he would believe the question was tied to how he healed her. Years of being brought up to rule has given her the skill of analyzing people. A skill that she deemed useless until now. She was glad to be proven wrong. Taking a deep breath she looked at the man in the eyes and asked the question that would change her life for ever. "No, I think that settles a few things. Very well now that we have cleared a few issues I Henrietta de Tristain ask you Marcel to be my familiar."

Hearing her ask with such calm and determined voice it was a shame that he would have to deny her what she was asking. "I'm rather sorry to inform you but I can not become your familiar. You see, the way you summoned me, it was not the summoning of a familiar." Closing his eyes he though of the best way to explain to her what she did. "The summoning you preform was from desire not like the summoning from need, it brought you what you wanted and that was someone to talk to. If it was like any mage summoning than it would have been just another animal that would fetch what you needed or did minor tasks." Taking a second glass from the table he poured himself some water and drank it slowly. After placing the glass back on the desk he continued. "The fact is the only way you can get my services is if you make a contract with me promising me that you will give me something once it ends."

Henrietta was rather confused again. If the summoning didn't yield a familiar than what did she get? What did this man want for his services? " What do you want in return?" she asked a little cautious since she didn't know his intentions.

"That is something you do not need to know. All that is required is a simple yes. Once that is done I will do what you ask within reason. Anything from fetching a document to killing a man" Letting his words sink in he gaged her reaction which he found rather calm. Good he didn't need to repeat himself. "Also once you have agreed I will give you a mark that will tie you to me as a master and servant. You choose where you want it so you can use it to communicate with me whenever the need arises."

The young princess thought about his words for sometime. It was not the way she though things would go but it would still work out and much better than she had hoped. Not only would she gain a servant but he will also serve as a guard and a someone to talk to. Bearing a mark was not a problem since her clothing tended to cover a lot of skin giving places to spare. Coming to a decision she immediately said yes. "Yes, I would like for you to become my familiar."

Nodding in satisfaction, he asked her where she wanted the mark. When she answered, he was rather surprised when she left the comfort of the bed letting the sheets fall to the floor showing her nude body to him. There was no shame on her face giving him the impression that she would do anything that was needed to be done even kicking modesty out the door. Placing her left hand in front of him indicated she wanted the mark on the back of her hand.

Smiling at her bold actions he knew it would not be a dull moment when he was with her. Taking a knee once more he gently took her hand. Looking at her eyes he placed a kiss on the back of her hand. It was brief but it did the job. "You are a strange woman you know. Most would be embarrassed being seen naked by a stranger." He was smirking now.

She was not like most woman. "When one is born to lead, they are trained to command an army. If I was in a military camp, then modesty would be the last thing in ones mind." Not long after her mini speech, the mark began to appear burning her skin causing her to hiss at the rather painful feeling. The heat got so intense that her knees buckled and fell to the ground. Marcel caught her and carried her back to bed pulling the sheets over her still naked form. "Why does it hurt so much?" she asked through gritting teeth. Tears began to flow as her entire body got even hotter.

Marcel settled on a simple wooden chair that appeared out of nowhere while holding the young woman's hand. "Reason your feeling pain is the seal is making connections within the body to establish ways to communicate that can't be interfered with. This way if you are in trouble and are in a place that magic will not be effective than you can speak to me through our mind scape. It won't be long now." Moments after what he had just said, sweet relief washed over her as the pain faded into a dull ache leaving her somewhat exhausted from the whole experience. Sweat covered her body making the sheets stick to her skin. Looking at the mark on her hand she that it was shaped like a lightning bolt between two broken wings.

Her new servant decided to give a demonstration on how the seal worked. First he would test their connection with simplest thing. _"Can you hear me?" _It was the easiest way and straight forward.

The princess was surprised to hear his voice in her head. She though it was strange to have someone in your mind knowing what you were thinking. She answered him through her mind _"I can hear you."_

Cutting of the link Marcel decided to move things forward. "Now that the test has been successful what would you like to do?" Moving towards a drawer on the right side of the bed he opened it and took out the outfit Henrietta wore during the summoning but this one was spotless. He cleaned it while the woman was resting. Placing it on the bed by her legs he waited for her to answer.

Henrietta thought for a little while before giving her first official order to her new familiar, or was it servant. She supposed she would ask later after they return to the castle. "I would like to change first then return to the castle. Then we can talk about this arrangement and what we can do to make it work well." She smiled at the possibilities. As she was to get out of the bed once more she saw the man standing in the same place unmoving looking at her eyes. She realized she never gave him the order to turn around or leave so he would just stand there and watch her get dressed. He may have seen her nude but that was done with disregard since she wanted to finish the contract. Now Henrietta was a little shy so she asked him to step outside while she got ready.

Giving a slight bow, Marcel walk towards the only door in the room leaving the woman to get herself changed.

The princess watch her new servant walk out the door closing it lightly not making much sound. Removing the sheets she got up and stretched a bit. Pain no longer seem to be bothering her, on the contrary, she felt well rested and oddly quite energized not a single sign of her previous fatigue or pain. Taking the clothing from the bed she found her panties putting them on noticing how soft they felt on her skin. The same could be said about her nightie. Looking around the room she saw things she previously missed, like how the room was a perfect ten by eight meter rectangle and how the walls and ceiling were made from perfect blocks of granite. The whole place was illuminated by torches that burned in white fire. The bed she was resting on was a black wooden frame with two mattresses covered in a royal purple sheet on the bottom and true black sheets on the top. It was quite large letting two people lie down comfortably without getting into each others personal space. The rest of the room was sparse except for the table, chair, and dresser. After finishing looking at the room, the princess walked out the door.

*****Scene Break*****

The transition from the room to the outside left her in the same forest where she performed the summoning. Seeing her familiar sitting on a stump, she looked behind her to see the door was gone and nothing but the forest itself was there. Her shock only lasted a few seconds. "More questions that needed answers I supposed." Her statement was but a whisper.

Marcel looked at the woman in front of him and smiled at her current confusion. He knew she would notice that they were back in the same spot where she summoned him as she would also be asking where the room went. Still there was no time to think of these things he needed to get her back to her castle before the sun rose. Standing from his log he approached the near naked woman and draped a soft cotton blanket around her shoulders. This gesture caused the princess to look at him with a questioning glance. He would have to explain more things to her. "We should go, it won't be long before the sun rises and your guards find you missing."

Henrietta agreed, if a member of the royal family is found missing then an uproar would alert others of her countries vulnerability. Clinging to the blanket, she was about to make her way to the castle's service door when she felt arms wrap around her back and the back of her legs. She felt herself rise from the ground and position into a comfortable embraced. Looking towards her servant, her explain to her she wasn't wearing shoes. If she stepped on a rock she could get injured. Seeing his logic she settled herself and let him carry her. He waked to the door used by the servants to enter without being noticed by other nobles. Entering, they both came to an open area that branched of to many corridors one that went to the sleeping quarters while another went to the kitchen and dinning area. This was the place that gave easy access so the servants can efficiently take care of the nobles' needs. Making their way towards the bedrooms, Henrietta tried to be quiet keeping the blanket from dragging and making noise. Looking back at her servant, she noticed he move in complete silence. As his footsteps touch the ground, no sound came. Reaching her own chamber, they went inside with Henrietta closing the door by flicking a small wooden wand she removed from between her breasts.

"I don't know if I should ask how you hid that." He said in surprise. "So what do you wish to do now?" her servant asked. He stood in the middle of the room waiting to get started in anyway she wanted. The young woman thought for a moment thinking what she wanted to do now. She was by no means tired, her sleep in the room was restful or so she thought. A bath would be necessary but only when a female servant came to assist her in the morning. She was not hungry so nothing there. Then in a thought, she could get several answer she's been wanting. Letting her down Marcel watched her go to bed. He waited for her to answer not moving from his spot.

Removing the blanket and placing it on a chair by the bed, the princess got comfortable under the covers. Finding that she still felt a bit cold without the black blanket, she decided to overlap it over herself. Reaching to pick it up, her eyes widened when she no longer saw it on the chair. When she turn to the man, he was still standing in the same place. Only this time he was smiling. He pointed at her lap giving her the sensation of what he did. She looked down on her self and saw the blanket already in place, perfectly smooth with no creases. Looking back at her servant he was now smirking. With a sigh she knew this was as good as time as any. "Please take a seat. If you can answer a few of my questions that would be fine."

Taking a seat in the chair next to her bed, Marcel made himself comfortable. After he was comfortable, a thought ran through his head. Reaching into empty space, his hand disappeared as the area where it was rippled into circular waves. He pulled his arm back with his hand holding a mug of hot chocolate. Placing the first cup on the small table next to the bed, he repeated the process and took a second one out. He offered it to the woman beside him. Henrietta looked at him in utter amazement, he just pulled a drink out of thin air. He watched her take the cup with caution, her face showed a child's sense of wonder as most mages can't make things appear out of nowhere.

"How did you do that?" she asked, the look of astonishment not quite leaving her face.

"Is that one of questions?" he asked, already knowing what her answer was going to be. He wanted to draw it out as long as possible. Get her excited.

She was nearly bouncing on the bed, eagered to know what he did. "Yes, please explain."

Taking a sip of the hot chocolate, he got himself comfortable and began. "What you just saw was a ripple which indicates that space is bending. To explain properly, let us say you draw two points on opposite sides of a sheet of paper. Then you fold the paper in half, letting the two points meet. The overlap of the points is where the space is shortest." Looking around her room, Marcel found a small vase that contained a small bouquet of lilacs. "How about I show you with that vase." When he got a nod of conformation from the princess, he proceeded with his example. Pointing to the vase, the space next to the vase began to ripple as well as the space in front of his hand. Pushing his hand through, the ripples waved faster while his hand disappeared. His hand reappeared on the other side with part of his arm, while grabbing the vase, he pulled back bringing the vase with him. Showing it to her highness to make sure it was real, he reversed the process and placed it back to his proper spot. "How was that?"

Henrietta was speechless. Beyond speechless. In front of her was a person who could bend the fabric of the universe to serve his needs. That was something no mage could do. Well, not exactly. When one summons a familiar, they create a portal to the world the summons resides. Once the summons is located, then the spells magic draws them to the world of the summoner. He however preform the same feat, only with an inanimate object. This made her wonder, "Can you do the same with anything that exist?" She was curious so she had to ask.

She was paying attention. That was good. "So long that what I want exists, then I can create the two points to bring what I want to me. That is what I used to bring the blanket from my home as well as the two cups of hot chocolate."

His statement caused her to think. If he brought those two items with him, does that include the room they were previously in? What about the second time the blanket appeared on her form without her being able to feel it? His explanation just brought more questions. Before she could ask anymore, he continued.

"The room that we were previously in was brought forth by the same technique. The blanket is a different story. If I merely retrieved it, you would still feel it when I draped it over you. For that I used a different technique." Drinking the rest of his chocolate, he waited for her to ask the question.

The young princess sat on her bed in deep thought. A bright smile graced her lips. If he could bring forth items from anywhere as long as he knew where they were, than she wouldn't have to worry about forgetting important documents. She could just ask him to retrieve them for her without going to back for them. Thinking further, she remembered what he said last. "What do you mean using a different technique?"

"Like I said, if I merely draped it over you, you would have felt it. To prevent you from noticing, I merely slowdown time in the room before I retrieved it and placed on top of you. Here let me show you in small scale." Standing from his chair, he walked to the middle of room while holding the cup in his hand. Henrietta watch closely, waiting to see what he would do now. Before Marcel dropped the cup, it began to glow in a white hue. When he let go, it seemed to float in mid air for a moment before falling in a lazy descend. While it continued to fall, the man turned to the woman on the bed. "Anything else?" he asked while smirking at her current reaction.

The woman was shocked once more. How couldn't she. She was looking at a simple mug fall to the ground at the speed even a feather can't match. She continued to watch it not noticing that the mug of chocolate, now cooler in temperature, was tilting dangerously, waiting to spill on her blanket. Before a single drop could stain the blanket and the white fabric of her sheets, the liquid in the cup began to glow in the same white hue as the mug that was falling. She saw the liquid float in a blob of milky brown, deforming into random shapes and patterns. Taking a delicate finger, she gave it a shy poke and watched it ripple like a stone thrown into a calm pond.

Marcel cleared his throat in order to get the womans attention. "You really should play with your food." He smiled at her embarrassed blush. When she finally placed his attention to him, he waved his hand to let the liquid rise and settle back into the cup. "You should drink while it is still warm enough to enjoy" he encouraged.

Not wanting to offend him, Henrietta took a small sip of the drink. Her eyes widen in surprised. The taste was outstanding. It was, what she considered, the perfect balance between chocolaty and sweet. She reveled in the taste, feeling quite happy. Just as she was about to thank him, a rather unladylike yawn passed through her lips. Feeling her embarrassment return, she started to wonder why she was feeling tired. Looking at her servant for an explanation, she waited for him to answer. He seem to be able to hear questions she didn't ask.

Taking a seat once again he began to explain. "It seems the energy I gave you has finally been used up. The only thing that was holding you up was the rest you received an hour ago. It is time for you to sleep. We can continue talking once you are fully rested." Not waiting for her to protest, which he knew she would do, he took the cup from her hands and tucked her in.

The young woman tried to stay awake, but she couldn't. The tired feeling grew in strength and washed over her body making her feel quite heavy. With one more long yawn she was sleeping peacefully, beginning to dream of the possibilities that her new servant could bring. Maybe she could even get out of the marriage arrangement. She dream of a tiny drop of water hit the floor with light ping. In the real world, the cup made it to the floor its lip cracking by the impact before the man picked it up.

Looking at the cup with a slight frown, Marcel used his dimensional shift to send the cups where they came from. Making sure that his new master was sleeping well, he walked over to her and leaned down to ear level. With the quietest whisper he said to her. "What ever you desire, will be my pleasure." With that said, he left her room in the only way he could without running into the now awaken castle staff. He fused with the shadow cast by the rising sun through the window, on the opposite side of the bed. Slowly his body became a pitch black form only outlined by his bodies edges. Sinking to the floor, he gave one last look around before disappearing without a trace he was even there.

*****Scene Break*****

Rising from the shadow of a tower, the man looked at the rising sun with a slight smile on his face. It had been some time since he felt its warmth on his face. He jumped into the air, just high enough to land on the cone of the tower. He sat down on the roof overlooking courtyard, thinking what has happened and what was about to happen. This could be the thing to cure his boredom, well at least he hopes it can. It had been dull ever since Roxanne went to sleep and the rest going there separate ways. All he had where the few people that he spoke to around Moonlight Night, a town near his home.

With a sigh, he wondered how he ended in this world again. Sure, he answered the call but still, it seemed surreal that his new master was the princess of the country of Tristain, a land next to Gallia. Funny, its seemed like a short time ago that he walked these lands with Roxanne. Now he has joined a new woman. One he could assist to become what she wants, give what she needs, just like his old master. Summoning a new cup of hot chocolate, he thought about past events that he witnessed around these parts. Like meeting Karin Désirée de Maillart, she was a little firecracker with a temper, especially if you mentioned her lacking in the chest area. Or about the attempted coupe of the Gallian Royal Guard : Dragons Sur la Rivière, a family of powerful water mages that perished in the attempt at the hand of the only true loyal member. They were loyal but got greedy as their fame rose, letting them believe they should rule. Yes, a history probably forgotten.

Pushing those thoughts away, new ones came to him on what he should hide from his new master. He can't well say that he has been here before or old problems may arise. He played ignorant with the questions on what is a noble but he slipped when he knew what a familiar was. His new master would ask how he knew, which he would answer only if she asked first. The same would go for his remaining abilities. He would hide those until he deemed fit to use them. Plus it is fun to see the woman in shock.

Standing up, he made his way to the shadow jumping off the tower, making the mug he was holding disappear along the way. There he would wait for his master to awaken. Once she did, then the fun would begin. Maybe he should start by making her breakfast, something she may not have seen before. A token to commemorate a new meeting and a long union. Reaching the shadow he began the process of fusing with it, slowly sinking into the wall. His last thought was rather strange. In his mind he wondered if Henrietta even notice what he looked like or what he was wearing. Everything might have happened in a blur to her. "O well, maybe she did. I hope she did or it would mean she has no attention to detail." With a final smirk he disappeared.

* * *

**A/N**

**To those that read this I hope you like it. This is my first time writing a piece of literature in a long. If you can give your comments about this chapter and, keep in mind that as the story progresses and advice is given it will get better, that would be great.**

**Cheers**


	2. First Taste of Freedom

**Royal Companion**

**I do not own the Familiar of Zero. If I did Louise would be locked up for crimes again humanity.**

**Enjoy**

* * *

Chapter 2: First Taste of Freedom

_"I wish to be free of this gilded cage."_

_- Henrietta_

* * *

Its was still dark when Agnes rose from her sleep. Sitting up, she began to stretch her muscles by raising her arms above her head giving a hardy yawn, letting the plain white covers fall from her body. Her hands brushed through her short blond hair, attempting to rid herself of her pillow head. Removing the rest of the sheets, she stood up and continued to stretch the rest of her body, several parts giving a satisfying pop. The plain mint green nightgown she was wearing, reaching just below her knees, rode high enough to reveal the bottom of plain white cotton panties.

Her weary light emerald eyes were barely opened as she walked over a small dresser where bowl and a pitcher of water rested. Pouring the contents of the pitcher into the bowl, she proceeded to wash her face using a washcloth she procured from one of the dresser drawers. Using gentle circular strokes, she was careful of not scratching her nose or lips. The water was cool on her skin making her sigh in content. Her light emerald green eyes lost a bit of their weariness, transforming her expression into one of sharp focus.

Years of constant physical training had sculpted her body into a lean figure of tight muscle. As woman of common blood, she did not possess the wealth that most nobles did, so being a bodyguard to her majesty suffice to live a decent life.

Opening the bottom drawer of her dresser, the young woman took out her uniform for the day. It consisted of a black skin tight long sleeved one-piece suit that stop several centimeters below her crotch, a long zipper that reached from the neck to above her waistline and a light shade of purple thigh high leather boots with metal plates that wrapped around the ankles and white fur trim. Over her inner clothing was a teal colored tunic that reached above the ankles, opened in the front from the waistline down showing her legs with metal armored shoulder pads and a metal plate that rested over her clavicle. Her forearms were wrapped in gray metal armor attached to fingerless violet colored gloves. Attached to her waist was a double edged straight sword in a sheath with a flintlock pistol in a holster. The entire ensemble was completed with a white cloak bearing the insignia of the Musketeer Knights.

Making sure her room was clean and her bed made, she walked out the door

* * *

The hall she was currently waking, was located in the barracks where her unit of soldiers rested during the times her majesty didn't need them. Walking towards the kitchen area, with her cloak trailing behind her, she saw a few of the women of the corps already dressed and eating breakfast. Taking an apple from the bowl on the table located in the middle of the kitchen, she said her good mornings and left outside. Before she made it out the door, a tall blue haired woman greeted her.

"Good morning Captain Agnes, I hope your sleep was restful?" The woman spoke to the newly identified Agnes with a voice of respect and professionalism.

Agnes turned to the woman behind her and identified her as her lieutenant, Michelle. Said woman had a light purple almost blue hair, light purple eyes and was a head taller then the blond captain, she also wore similar clothing with a few differences. The differences were the color of her clothing, the length of the tunic and the size of the sword. The tunic was green in color, while also quite shorter than her captain's ending a few centimeters above the height of her boots, with two vertical slits the height of her hips. Her boots were similar only colored black instead. Last thing was the sword, still double edged, it was longer and heavier than any of the other women in the squad.

A small smile crept onto Agnes as she saw a woman she could truly admire. "I slept quite well, in fact, yesterday's afternoon practice left me tired so I slept well through the night. How about yourself?"

Michelle for her part was still a bit tired, not being able to sleep completely through the night due to the storm. A yawn gave her captain the answer for her. A bit embarrassed she answered "Not a well as yours it seems. During last nights rain, thunder seemed to appear and struck with frequency that prevented me from sleeping soundly." She yawned again, letting everyone how tired she really was. "Some food should wake me up."

"Very well, since her Majesty has no place to travel to nor any meetings, she has given us a day of rest. Don't worry about today and take some time off. Just make sure your ready tomorrow." Taking a bite from her apple, she gave a quick bow leaving the kitchen not waiting for her colleague to answer.

A chestnut brown haired woman, shorter than both Agnes and Michelle walked to and stood beside the lieutenant. "Where do you suppose she is headed?" she asked, curious where their captain was heading so early if the princess gave them the day off.

The lieutenant looked at the woman beside her. She wore the standard uniform similar to Agnes's tunic only in green, a yellow cloak and no armor shoulder pads.

Answering in a tone that sounded like a friend worried for a friend, she conveyed what she believed was her captain's possible destination. "I suppose she will go to the training field. She seems to be training harder than normal."

It was rather true, on her free days and anytime they weren't needed, their captain would train like a madwoman. It seemed that she was rather irritated lately, she was neutral to her squad and respectful to the princess, but to any mages, she would scowl as she passed them.

"Lets leave her alone for now, OK." Waking towards the table, she sat down as another member of the squad place a bowl of hearty beef stew and a basket of bread rolls. After all members sat down, they gave a quick prayer and began to eat.

*****Scene Break*****

With her back to the barracks as well as the castle, the blond woman walk down a torch lit path towards one of the training fields. It being still dark out, it was needed since the surrounding wall blocked out the meager light from the two moons. Reaching a large rectangular piece of land devoid of any obstructions, Agnes continued to a lone tree located at the edge of the field. Finishing her apple core and all she sat down, resting by leaning on the trunk, she waited for day break. This time was hers, using it to remember what she has lost and to think about what she will gain. How once her mission is finished, her life can begin.

Now is the time to remember what she will do to those that had taken everything from her. Her family. Her home. Her life.

* * *

_**Agnes's Memories**_

_It began one night in her village of __D'Angleterr__e, the fire had spread quickly. A young Agnes could hear the screams of the people fill, what was once empty tranquil silence. The smoke began to fill her two bedroom home, rising into a gray haze, preventing her from seeing no more than half a meter in front of her._

_As she made her way to her parents bed room, she could feel the old hard wood of the floor scrape the soles of her bare feet. When she reached it, the door had been blown away along with part of the wall. An explosion due to a container of oil they kept in there room._

_Her parents, well, they were nothing but charred remains on what used to be their bed the corpses were in embrace, their last moments before the smoke suffocated them and the fire consumed them. Terror at the sight froze her in place. She wanted to cry, she wanted to scream but the rising heat dried her tears and the smoke filled her lungs. She realized if she stayed, she would suffer the same fate. It was either stay and die or run and live._

_She ran._

_Outside was no better. The whole village was a blaze. The homes of everyone she knew were crumbling. Metal and glass melted, wood became ash and live bodies turned to charcoal. She gagged as the repulsive smell of her burning countrymen reached her nostrils._

_The fear returned, as she stood stock still looking at a man she knew. He was a fruit stand owner that gave her an apple once in a while. He also taught her to eat every last bit of it. Said man was writhing on the ground, screaming as the flames licked his body, blistering it with the searing heat leaving it nothing more than a roasted mountain of sizzling flesh. His screaming stop as he stopped moving, no longer alive. _

_Her tears overcame the fire, burning hotter than the flames themselves. Her crying screams overcame the roar of the fires, a sound that breaks the heart of anyone to here it. Agnes screamed into the burning night. Looking around, there was nothing left. Nothing for her._

_She was becoming light headed as her crying continued. For a moment she became disoriented, falling to the ground with a soft thud. Her screams became a sob, the smoke slowing her down. She collapsed from the lack of oxygen, since almost all of it burned away with the village._

_In her final thoughts, she waited for death to come for her. With no one left she was all alone. She couldn't survive by herself, nor would she be able to continue. Sleep had taken her, ensuring she would feel no pain once the fire came to consume her. _

_In a moment of clarity, she could feel herself moving. Opening her eyes for a bit, she could see the shoulder of a man carrying her on his back, away from the inferno of what once was her home. A burn scar decorated his shoulder, a wound he received from saving her. The price this man paid. Again, the sweet release of unconsciousness took her once more._

_She woke up in the town next to hers, in the care of a couple who informed her about a man who save and payed for her stay with them. When she asked about the man, they told her he never gave them his name, only to take care of the girl, leaving shortly after. _

_When Agnes found out why her home was destroyed, it was said that disease had overrun __D'Angleterre__ and needed to be burned into the ground to be stopped from spreading. She never believed that, all the townspeople were very healthy. No one knew the real reason, the only thing they knew was a band of fire mages were ordered to ensure that nothing survived._

_After hearing the story, she vowed to find all the fire mages involved in the destruction and slaughter of her village. It would take her years of training to become strong enough in order to exact her revenge and as long to find enough information to look for the culprits. She didn't how long it would take, but it didn't matter, she would make them pay._

_**Agnes's Memories END**_

* * *

Looking out towards the field, the captain saw dawn was breaking. She must have reminisced for quite some time. Standing up, she dusted off her clothing and made her way towards the training field. Removing her sword from its sheath, she stabbed it into the ground.

Walking towards a simple wooden shed located on the opposite side of the tree, she produced a key from the armor plate on her chest and proceeded to open the door. Inside were several targets for rifles, dummies for sword and spear practice and rolled up straw mats to practice slashing techniques. Taking several of each, she placed them throughout the field in a scattered pattern.

Walking back to her sword, she hefted it on to her shoulder with the flat part resting in the between the edge of her shoulder and her neck. The fingers of her right hand lightly caressed the grains of the wood that made the handle of her pistol, as she walked towards the middle of field, waiting for the signal to start. The signal was a copper coin she took out from the pistol holster, flipping it high into the air, she waited for it to fall to the ground. Closing her eyes and taking a slow deep breath, she continued to wait.

_**'Clink'**_

When she heard the ping, she was off. Taking her sword, she slashed at the first straw mat making an underhanded diagonal cut, cutting it cleanly in half. Running towards a dummy, the blond jump to the air falling with and overhead slash ripping it from the head down to the torso. Not losing momentum she spun around, slashing at the dummy located a meter to the right of the previous one. She remove her pistol from its holster, taking aim and shooting at the red target a few meters to her left. The bullet hit it slightly to the right of the center, this made her frown. Leaving that for later, she focused on the rest of the targets.

This continued for most of the morning not stopping to rest, drink, or eat. Once all her targets were 'killed', she would replenish her supply of targets and reload her pistol, starting over again and again.

* * *

Before the sun hit noon, she stopped. Huffing in exhaustion, she looked at her handiwork with a piercing gaze. All the dummies and rolled mats had clean, precise cuts on them. The red targets however were a different story. Some had bulls-eyes while others missed their targets by a few centimeters to millimeters at a time. This made her frown. 'How can I take revenge, when my technique is so sloppy. This will not do. I need to improve more.' Clenching her teeth, she berated herself over a few missed targets. Agnes wanted to be precise in her execution. How could she take revenge with this level of skill.

Just as she was about to set up for another round, when her stomach decided to tell her to take a break. She hadn't eaten anything except the single apple since she woke up. It was time for a proper meal and water to replenish what she had lost through sweat during her work out.

Making her way back to the kitchen, she could see Michelle mount her horse and leave in the direction of the Capital, a town located about an hours ride from the castle, like she does every time she could spare. To the blond woman, it didn't matter what her knights did in their spare time, just as long as they were ready at a moments notice.

Once in the kitchen she poured herself some of the still warm stew and sat down to eat. Chewing slowly, savoring the food one of their own had maid.

The cook had left in one of the carriages in order to buy more ingredients for lunch and dinner. Unlike the other knights, the Musketeers Knights were all women. They cleaned, cooked and fended for themselves. They were all commoners, so the others knight squads didn't respect them as they did to others. This led to most of the nobles looking down on them and insulting there lack of magic.

She was not bothered by it, she knew that her pistol was faster than the chants used to cast a spell. They just acted superior because the could use magic, take that away and they were nothing.

Finishing her meal, the blond woman went back to the training field, remembering to take a water skin with her. She made it the field and was about to start setting up for the next couple of rounds, when the movement of a shadow on the ground caught her eye.

The shadow of the castle was on the ground with a distinct shape of a person sitting on it. Looking at the tower that the shadow corresponded to, she saw nothing. She would think that it had been her shadow crossing the towers but it couldn't be, she was standing up and it was sitting down. A normal person would disregard it as a trick of light, but she new better. If there was a person on the tower, than they could as well as entered the castle through an open window.

Dropping the water skin, she made her way towards the castle entrance, the one used by the staff. Inside she maneuvered around the maze of corridors, keeping an eye open for anything suspicious. She passed several guards and even a few members of her squad, asking if they've seen anyone or anything suspicious. All who were asked hadn't seen anything, in fact it was still quiet since her highness, Princess Henrietta, had not yet awaken. That had unsettled the captain since her majesty was up at dawn in her study, going over plans for the day or having a meeting with her advisers. Saluting the guard that gave her the information, she went straight for the princess's room.

* * *

Agnes arrived a short time later, noting that she had not encountered anything out of the ordinary. Knocking quite loudly on the door, she was met with silence. Knocking again she was made with the same answer. Moving the door knob she found it locked so she took another key from her breast plate giving to her by her highness Queen Marianne in order for her daughter's personal knights to protect her if needed.

Once in the room she looked around, the only strange thing she found was her princess sleeping, wrapped in a pitch black blanket that she didn't believed she owned. Almost every single item the woman own was white, silk, satin, suede, and expensive.

Walking with caution to the bed, she could hear the soft breathing of her princess, indicating she was alive and sleeping soundly. Reaching for the blanket, feeling its warm soft touch on her fingers, she began to lift it.. She wanted to make sure that her majesty was OK, just to be sure. Slowly moving the blanket aside, she found only the young purple haired woman's white sheets. No blood or other signs of foul play. Placing the blanket over the form once more, looked around again to make sure everything was fine. She was about to walk out the door when a voice accompanied by a rustling sound reach the blonds ears.

"Is someone there?" a tired voice call out.

Agnes turned around to see that her actions awakened the sleeping woman. Standing at attention she answered her sire. "My apologize your majesty, I did not wish to wake you."

Henrietta rub her eyes. They still felt heavy, which meant she was not asleep for long. Looking at her intruder, she saw her personal guards captain standing ram rod straight, waiting to be addressed. Going over what she what she said, she was a little upset that her sleep was cut short, this got her a little irritated. "Those may not have been your intentions, but you have succeeded quite well." She rubbed her eyes again and yawn into the back of her hand. "Please, tell me what caused you to come here and take such actions?"

Agnes was not surprised, in fact it would be strange if the woman was cheerful being woken up. "I was told by the guards that you were still resting. I thought it was strange so I came to investigate. I sorry to have interrupted." The blond knight took a knee and bowed low to show she was sorry. No one said anything for a few minutes and Agnes looked up to see a deep frown on the princess face.

"You're lying" was all that the irritated girl said.

The knight was shocked. She was just told that she was lying, and by the one woman she truly respected.

"I sleep in from time to time, especially after a long day of work. This has not cause you to come here to check up on me before." Henrietta yawn once more before she continued with her question. "Tell me the truth, why have you come to my bed chamber and inspected me while I was sleeping?" Her voice was firm. Too firm to allow her captain a dishonest answer.

The captain couldn't lie to her. Not her. She didn't even know why she tried. Probably to not alarm her princess in case it was a false alarm. Still kneeling she gave her answer, her eyes looking at the stone floor ashamed. "I...I thought I saw someone on one of the castle's towers through a shadow on the floor. When I looked up, I didn't see anyone, but the feeling didn't leave me. I decided to investigate, asking the guards if they had seen anything. All answered no. One did informed me that you were still sleeping this late in the day so I came to see if you were OK. I used the key the Queen gave me in case of emergency." Looking at the woman still in bed in the eyes, respect and concern was shown in her expression, she continued. "I just wanted to make sure nothing has happened to you."

At first Henrietta was going to dismiss her knight as just seeing things but when the word shadow came in the sentence, she thought maybe her new servant used one of his abilities to move to the tower.

It had not been a day and her servant, Marcel had already been spotted. Her captain probably spotted him and believed him to be an assailant coming to assassinate her. Such concern. It would feel better if she did it as a concerned friend rather than an employed soldier. At least she was dedicated.

Softening her expression, she spoke in a soft caring voice, "I thank you for your concern and please allow me to apologize for my harsher tone earlier." She yawned again into the back of her hand. " As you can see, I am still a bit sleepy. When you moved the blanket, I found myself waking up earlier then I hoped." She was sorry she answered her captain in a less than friendly tone.

Standing up abruptly, the blond knight shook her hands in front of herself, trying to stop the princess from apologizing any further. "There's no need to apologize, you had every right since I intruded in your sleep without proof of what I saw."

"No need Captain. Although, I do wonder. What did you see?" She was a little curious.

Agnes tried to remember. It was the tower and someone on it. "I saw...a shadow. The castle tower and a what looked like a person sitting on it."

"Was it a man or woman" the girl asked in a voice that conveyed her curiosity, trying to hide her prying to see how much the woman before her saw. She wanted her servant to remain a secret until she knew that no one would make an argument against her summoning a familiar. She sigh, it would be a headache if they did.

Thinking harder, she could not discern the gender since she turned around rather quickly. "I didn't stare for long since I looked up not a moment after spotting it on the ground." Dejected, she came to realize it was foolish to pursue what was possibly a figment of her imagination. It might have been her working to hard.

Henrietta herself was relieved, Marcel had not been discovered so there was no need to explain to her captain what she saw. Thanking the founder, her expression took on a neutral facade to hide her brief worry. "Well, since I am fine, you don't need to worry. If there is nothing else, please leave me be."

Taking a knee and bowing once more, the blond woman apologized once more and left out the door.

–-

Once in the hallway, Agnes wondered if she should take a break, since it seemed she really needed it or just continue to practice her techniques. On one hand, she hadn't taken a break in a long time, on the other, she really wanted to continue sharpening her skills. Coming to a compromise, she decided to relax by continuing her research to see if she could find any new information on the group of fire mages that attacked her home. With that decided she made her way to the royal library.

*****Scene Break*****

After the captain of her personal guard was gone, the young princess sighed a sigh of relief. It was not as close a call as she though, but still it could have gone bad. If a stranger was discovered within the castle walls, the guards would have reacted violently to the unknown intruder.

No longer feeling the need of sleep, although her body was still tired, Henrietta decided it was time to get up. This day, being a rare time she didn't need to meet with anyone, she could use it to get to know her servant/familiar. Removing the covers, she stood up and stretched herself, feeling nice as her muscles relaxed. Looking herself over she saw the mark of her contract on her hand. This caused her to go pale as she thought back on her knight entering her room. If she had discovered the mark, she would ask how she got it since it wasn't there before.

'I can't believe I forgot about this. What would happen if someone else saw it.' Her mind went through several scenarios from her explaining about her summoning, to a man hunt for the person who would dare mark their beloved Princess. She would have to hide it. Fortunately, her dress had long sleeves that covered the back of her hand. "That should a least provided some cover."

Another realization entered her mind. A frown creased her forehead 'The woman that assists me in the bath would surely notice it. How could I keep her quite?' She paced around the room, thinking of what she could do. Asking another servant wouldn't help, they tended to talk about their days and her mark would come up in conversation. The acting reagent Cardinal Mazarin would catch wind and demand her to show him. She couldn't allow that to happen. With a sigh she came to the a conclusion. She would have to struggle to take a bath alone. This would mean she couldn't reach her own back.

She sighed at the thought. "I would feel disgusting." It was true, she didn't like to feel dirty. Not like when she was a little girl playing in the dirt in the castle courtyard. Her sorrow didn't last long, her mind went to her new servant Marcel, surely he could help her. "Why not. He is my servant and he has proven to be a gentlemen." The more she though about it, the more she liked the idea. He should have seen her disrobed if her lying nude in bed was any indication. He healed her so well and he gave her the mark without a lingering glance. He could helped her bathe so no one else has to see it. With a righteous fist and a nod, she set out to do just that.

'Now, how am I to find a servant who can possibly travel through shadows.' She though of a way to find him, though nothing came to mind. She couldn't go out and look for him, though someone would surely see her and wondered what she was looking for.

After some time of thinking, the solution came to her and she gasped. "The mind link. That should work."

Thinking about the words needed to be said, she felt her mind open. A feeling of connection that felt quite intimate let her know it was working., 'Marcel, I need you.' The voice in her mind sounded a bit whiny which came as a surprise to her.

Not a second later. "You called." He appeared behind her. His form folding into existence like a sheet of paper.

The girl jumped and squeaked in surprise. Her feet tripped on part of the blanket that fell to the floor and almost fell on her butt. Her servant Marcel was quick, he caught her before she touched the ground. Regaining her balance, she stood up quick and turned to face him with a frown on her face. "Why did you do that?" Her voice was slightly raised, enough to show him she was upset with his actions but not enough to draw attention to her room.

He looked down at his master in surprise. It soon turned to amusement, she looked really cute with her frown and cheeks slightly inflated with her lips in a pout. Her hands were balled into fist. If it wasn't for her showing so much skin, she would be adorable instead of sexy.

"Sorry, the way you called seemed urgent so I thought it was best to come right away." Trying to hide his amusement, he continued. "What do you need you're majesty?"

"I require assistance with my bathing."

What she said caused him to fault. With a questioning tone he spoke. "Really, I thought you have female servants that helped you in those situations?"

She could understand what he said, a female wishing for a male to help her bathe seemed a little odd unless she wished to seduce him. Not that she knew how to do any of that. Explaining her reason might help her enlighten him why she was asking this.

Showing him her new mark. "You see, this mark will draw attention to me. If my servants see it, they will wonder how I got it." She began her pacing once more, letting the movement help her gather her thoughts. "If word gets out, then Cardinal Mazarin will wish to see it. He will ask and I will have to tell him about you." Stopping to look at him in his liquid steel colored eyes. "So you see, it be best if no one would find out." Her last sentence was spoken with a pleading tone.

'I understand her dilemma. A woman of her position would be questioned. If she announced that she has summoned a human familiar, then nobles of high standing might believe said familiar would influence her in decisions regarding the commoners. Like maybe give them more power.'

Taking a deep breath, the black haired man decided to put her fears to rest. "Very well, I will do all I can to keep the arrangement a secret." He smiled at her to show that he intended to do just that.

Henrietta was overjoyed that he understood. Her bouncing in place made him chuckle. This started to seem like a secret between friend, and she liked it.

"Thank you so much, you don't know how happy I am to hear that." Wiping a single tear, she continued. "Well, now that we have established that, I suppose it's time for me to clean up."

Henrietta asked Marcel to gather a few things, like her dress, cape, crown. She herself, picked out a pair of panties, thigh high white stockings with matching garter belt and white one inch heeled shoes. After everything was gathered, the woman told her servant where the bath was located. Taking his master by the waist, he told her that he would take her there via the shadows. This proved her theory on the him being a to move through the shadows.

Her moving through the shadows, let's just say that the experience was...interesting.

*****Scene Break*****

Fresh, clean and fully dressed, the young princess walked with a spring in her step and a pleasant smile on her face. The bath was quite invigorating, everything was done with the utmost care. The water was nice and warm, the way he scrubbed her down was done with such care that it felt almost like a massage. It wasn't arousing like she heard from a few women in the castle staff, just pleasant.

Her servant also spoke to her like they were old friends talking about there lives. She talked about her life as royal, how she was mentored in classes ranging from being a noble lady to how to lead her people when the time came for her to assume the throne. How she use to have a friend that came to the castle and played with her. She even spoke about the friend that was her father.

He in turn spoke a bit about his life, like traveling to different places, learning about different cultures and honing his skills in swordsmanship. It appear he was quite adept to the sword from the way he spoke.

When she asked about his other abilities, like his **Dimensional Shift **and **Time Manipulation, **he just smiled and said that he learned it on his travels. When she press for further information, he just told her that it be best to leave it as a surprise.

She was giddy with excitement on what else her servant was capable of. Anyone she passed would see her radiant smile and greet her the way she greeted them.

As the purple haired woman continued to travel through the maze of halls of her home, she finally reached her intended destination. The dining room. While her servant was dressing her, which he completed quicker than her female staff, he asked her if he wanted to fix her some breakfast to commemorate their new meeting. She was really happy by this idea, she normally didn't have company so she liked how he offered to prepare a meal and even eat with her.

Reaching the dining room, she could see no one was around, 'good' she thought. Closing the door and locking it behind her, she sat in her spot at the head of a grand table, able to seat about thirty guests in comfort.

She felt her mark tingle a little bit, indicating Marcel was close by. True to her feeling, the amazing servant folded out of thin air holding a large black platter filled with plenty of food for two people. He laid the platter on the table in front of Henrietta with but a whisper of a clatter. On the plates were steak and cheese omelets, hash browns and what looked like thicker plain crapes with butter on top. A pot was a filled with a blend of tea she could not identify. Another was filled with a black liquid she could also not identify. The rest containers were filled with sugar, cream, a strawberry syrup, lemon and orange slices.

Overall it smelled wonderful to her.

"This all looks quite delicious, how did you make all this on such a short time?" In her excitement she forgot on what this man could do so far.

Not wanting to reveal every thing just yet, he decided to give her an answer that would satisfy her curiosity for now. "I have my ways." Perfect. He gave his answer while setting the plates down in front of his master.

Henrietta did not even seem to pay attention, she was too busy savoring the scent of the food to think straight. It was intoxicating and it only made her realize how hungry she was.

Once the place was set, Marcel sat to the left of the white clad princess, deciding it was time to eat they dug in. For him it was just a regular meal. Nothing fancy but delicious and filling. Looking over at his breakfast partner, he couldn't help but chuckle. To the young woman, the food was extraordinary. It tasted divine that just one bite and she fell in love with her meal. Her hands cupped her cheeks as her eyes close in content.

"Mmmm, this is delicious. What is in this dish?" Her mouth was not empty for long as she forked another bite of the omelet.

Putting his fork down, Marcel counted off his fingers as he listed the ingredients. "Lets see, there's eggs, steak, cheese, mushrooms, tomatoes, pepper, salt, and a bit of a vinegar base hot sauce." Finishing, he began to eat once more.

Once more, it seemed that Henrietta did not listen, as she was too busy eating and enjoying herself.

With the omelets followed by the hash browns done, they both turn their attention to, what Henrietta believed, were crapes. Looking at her servant/new friend, she could see that he poured the strawberry syrup over them. Mimicking him, she did the same. Taking her fork and knife, she cut off a small piece. When the piece touched her tongue, it was like a choir sang in her head. Sweet and fluffy, a combination that invokes the happiness of the heart.

The whole meal went in a comfortable silence.

Finishing his last bite, Marcel poured the black liquid form one of the pots into a cup. He then pour cream and sugar, stirring while doing so. Fixing a second cup with the tea, he placed it in front of the still smiling woman.

Finishing her last bite, Henrietta noticed the steaming cup of tea placed in front of her. It had a nice aroma, the cream turned it a nice caramel color. Taking a sip, like the rest of the meal, it was also good. Closing her eyes and taking another slow sip, she let its warmth spread through out her body. Looking at the black haired man, in this lighting he was, she saw him enjoy his drink. She wondered what he was drinking.

"Can you tell me, what are you drinking?" The tone of her voice and furrow of her brow showed curiosity.

Tipping his cup for her to see the liquid better, he explained. "This is coffee, a drink made from ground roasted beans and soaked in hot water to release there flavor. Once that has happened, you strain the liquid from the solids and drink the liquid like you would tea. I also helps you wake up in the morning."

Nodding in understanding, the purple hair female asked another question. "What about those thick crapes?"

"Those are called pancakes. They use the same ingredients as crapes, only with more leavening. That's what makes them so fluffy." He took another sip of his coffee.

The rest of the time was used to explain things about Halkeginia and it countries a well as the current system of magic. History was also thrown in just to know what has been going on in this world. What seemed to upset Marcel the most of what they talked about, was how if you are born with magic, you are automatically a Noble. No money is needed, you just have to be born into it. The commoners as the magic-less people were called, had to work hard just to get by. They are disrespected by those who have power. To him it was sickening.

The air grew cold. Not the metaphor cold, it was literally colder. Henrietta could see her breath billowing out of her lips. A shiver ran through her body. The steam no longer rose from the pots and the sweat from the cups seemed to freeze instantly. Not wanting to find out how cold it could get, she tried to steer the conversation in a new direction. It seems that her friend here didn't like the commoners were treated in this system. Friend. She smiled to herself. She liked the sound of that.

"Well" she said, bringing attention to herself. "The meal you prepared was delicious." Dabbing her mouth with a napkin, she continued. "What do you suppose we do now?" She had finish her tea and couldn't eat or drink anymore, a testament on the quality of the meal.

The cold feeling stopped just as quickly as it had arrived, his mood did a one-eighty in the blink of an eye.

Thinking of their next move, going over possible options, and coming to a probable course of action depending on the answer, he decided to ask the princess what she wanted to do. "So Henrietta, what is it that you want to do?" He said it in a casual tone, like he had been calling her that for years.

This surprised the woman in more ways than one. First was that he asked what she wanted. Normally, people would ask things of her not even wondering what she wanted.

Second, he said her name. Her name. No one called her by her name. All except her mother called her princess, her majesty or any other form of what they considered a proper title for her. Yet he said it so casually that she couldn't help but tear up. She wasn't just a princess to him, she was a person.

Seeing her tears, Marcel started to panic. Was it wrong of him by calling her by her name. "I'm sorry for calling your name so casually. Please, disregard it. I'll just call you by your proper title." His hands waving in front of his face quickly.

Henrietta's head shot up, her tears gave him the wrong message. 'No. No. Please don't take it back.' she thought. Someone had just made her a person, it warmed her heart to be called a person not just a symbol. In those brief seconds her life was looking up, she didn't want to return to the cold loneliness. He was her friend and she was going to keep it that way.

"No, please, its find. Its just..." She stop.

"Just" He raised an eyebrow. Waiting for her to finish

Taking a deep breath she continued. "Its just that, no one calls me by my name." Looking at her friend she in the eyes, she continued. "Most only see a princess, a new ruler for the kingdom."

Cutting her off Marcel finished her sentence for her. "They only see the symbol of the country, not the girl below the crown."

Her nod affirmed his suspicion.

"I wish to be free from this gilded cage."

* * *

**A/N**

**Thats it for this chapter. I hope this will be better than the first.**

**I want to thank all those people who read my first chapter. It made me very happy to see someone take interest. I would like to especially thank the two people who posted in the comments. Thank You duked and Argorok**

**The next chapter will have more action since the first few are mostly used to setup the story. **

**In the next few days I will post in my bio a character description of Marcel and a brief history on how he came to be. It had been 10 years since his creation.**

**Anyway, thanks for reading.**

**Cheers**


	3. Omake : A Hungry Knight

**Omake : A Hungry Knight**

**I made this in order to explain what Marcel was doing after Henrietta went to sleep as well as give the reader something to hold them over until the third chapter was done. Sometime in the future I might integrate Liliane into the main story if the readers would like it.**

* * *

She had woken up with a start. Dark brown hair fell like a curtain over her shoulders, partially obstructing the view of the oversize gray wool shirt she used to sleep in. Eyes the color of caramel opened to greet the sun, then shutting closed at the bright light. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, the young woman got out of bed and proceeded to clean her face in a similar fashion as her Captain Agnes.

Removing her shirt, she took her uniform for one of her drawers, putting on every piece and grabbing her sword and pistol. Making her bed, she walked out the door.

**-xxx-**

"NOOOOOOOO!" A loud scream, one that shook the very foundation of the building, was heard through out the barracks of the Musketeer Knights. While most would run to the source, those who heard it merely ignored it knowing who it belonged to. The scream came from the dark haired woman in the kitchen. She stared at the empty pot were stew used to be.

Walking into the kitchen a short haired blond came upon a scene that was quite common. A knight, who had overslept and missed breakfast, was holding onto an empty pot while sitting in a pool of tears. The blond woman placed a crate full of food on the floor by the table. Wiping her hands on the white apron she was wearing, she walked towards the distraught soldier on the floor.

"Not this again. Didn't I tell you that morning meals are in the morning Liliane." Her voice and expression showed no concern, just pity.

Hearing her name; Liliane looked up, with a tear streaked face, to see the face of the woman who cooks all the meals. "Its not my fault no one woke me up." A sob escaped her lips.

"And I have told you, you should learn to wake yourself up." Taking the pot from the sobbing girl having to use a little force, she placed all the empty plates from the table inside it and proceeded to walk outside to wash them. Before she made it out the door, a the girls voice stopped her in her tracks.

"Is there anything left?" She was hopeful that that there was a least something warm to eat.

Looking around, the cook could see that nothing else was prepared, only a few pieces of bread were left. "Nothing until afternoon I'm afraid." With that, she continued on her way.

With a sigh, Liliane got up and walked out of the kitchen.

**-xxx-**

This always happened. Every morning that they didn't have any duties, she would sleep in. It wasn't her fault that she wasn't as trained as the rest of the squad. Her sword was heavy, the pistol recoiled to much and her uniform was constricting. Before joining the Musketeer Knights, she live in a village in the mountains close to wear the fire dragons dwelled. Her clothing was made from heavy material and loose fitting which allowed her to run unobstructed.

When she join the knights, they gave her a tight fitting uniform that she had to wear when on duty. This caused her to be tired by the end of the day which meant she slept in on the regular.

She walked down a path with unlit torches into a field littered with broken equipment. 'Hmm, the captain must have been practicing again.' Since she had nothing else to do until lunchtime, she decided to occupy her time cleaning. Its was then that a pleasant aroma wafted through the air. Her hunger was more pronounced that the scent beckon her to follow it, and follow it she did.

The scent took her beyond the castle walls an into the forest behind it. Weaving through the trees, the scent became stronger and more distinct. It was the smell of meat and eggs. Coming into a clearing, she could see a fire going under a metal plate being held up by four stone blocks in each corner.

Beside the cooking food was a man dressed in black clothing hunched over a wooden board cutting tomatoes. He didn't seem to have noticed her presence so she got closer.

"Can I help you?" The man said, not looking up from his work.

The question startled her to the point that when she took a step back, she tripped on a tree root falling to the floor on her butt.

Standing up from his crouching position, Marcel walked to the fallen woman extending his hand to help stand.

Seeing the hand she grabbed it, getting pulled up quickly. "Thanks." Dusting herself of, Liliane

look to see the man return to cutting up vegetables.

Then she wondered, what was he doing out here cooking and so close to the castle no less. Believing him to be up to no good she removed the sword from the sheath on her hip and pointed it to his back.

"Tell me, what are you doing in this forest close to the castle?" Her voice was firm. Well, as firm as the hungry woman could muster. The cooking meat smell quite good that she licked her lips thinking about it.

Marcel heard the sound of the sword removed from its sheath as well as the faint swipe of her tongue on her lips. 'So she thinking more of the food than why I'm here. Must be really hungry.' Turning to look at the brown haired woman in the eyes and using his **Mortal Fear** ability, which manifested it self as harden steel eyes and a deep frown, he gave her a single command. "I suggest you put that sword away and sit down." It was strong that left no room for discussion.

Liliane's body froze from his stare. She began to shake, that the pistol on her hip began to rattle. The sword in her hands felt even heavier than normal and she couldn't draw a breath. A fight or flight response would have made her drop the sword and make a run for it but she couldn't even do that. With not many options she decided to listen and hope that the feeling would go away.

Sitting down on a large rock, she started to twiddle her thumbs looking at the ground by her feet, waiting for the black haired man to say anything else. She may be a Musketeer Knight but she could tell just from his stare that she was out matched. If she tried to fight him the he would probably drive the knife he was holding into her chest.

The sound of plates reached her ears; looking up, she could see the man scoop the meat into it while also pouring tea into a cup fixing it with milk and sugar.

Placing the plate and tea onto a wooden board, he walked to the woman offering the makeshift tray to her. "Here, you can it this if you want." He smiled when she looked at the food before her and swallowed her excess saliva. Her big brown eyes seemed to sparkle when she looked at him with a questioning gaze.

"R-Really?" Her voice broke. With a nod from the man she took the platter and placed it on her lap. The scent was heavenly, how could something so simple smell so good.

Not waiting any longer, she picked up her fork and put a piece in her mouth. To say it was delicious would be an understatement. Tears formed, it was something that couldn't be described. Not holding back she began to shove the rest in, not caring about the manners.

She ate the meat and drank the tea, not once saying anything to the man who cooked this. Midway through her plate, she noticed the man produce a glass bottle filled with a red cloudy liquid and proceeded to pour its contents onto the rest of the cooking meat. The sizzling scent reached her nose and its seemed to complement each other well. Curious, she wondered what it was.

"Excuse me." Once the man acknowledged that he was listening, she continued. "What did you just poured on the meat?"

Taking the bottle, Marcel showed her. "This is called hot sauce. Its made with red peppers, salt and vinegar. It really good on some dishes."

"Really?" Liliane was skeptical since she'd of hot sauce before. Still her curiosity got the best of her and decided to try it for herself. "May I have some?"

"Sure," was the word he said and handed the bottle to her with a smile, not shifty like someone ready to spring a trap, but a smile that said he was happy that someone was willing to try it.

Like she had seen him do before, she shook the bottle to pour a few drops onto the meat on her plate. Giving the bottle back, she fork her meal into her mouth. An explosion occurred. Her eyes widened in disbelief. How could adding just a few drops make something that already taste good even better. It was a trick, it had to be. It must be a potion, only magic could create such a wonderful flavor

Looking at his guest, Marcel could see that her eyes were glazed over. He honestly didn't expect such a reaction.

"What sort of magic is this?" The tone of disbelief still tinged her voice.

Okay, he didn't expect that either. "Its not magic, just a mixture of various ingredients, nothing really special."

"No it must be. How else could it make a simple thing like seared meat taste heavenly?"

'Sigh, so used to seeing magic that she can't believe that something good can come without it.' "This is more related to alchemy than magic. You blend ingredients and cook to fuse the flavors together. Now would you..."

When he looked, the brown haired knight was not even paying attention, she seemed more interested in licking her now empty plate than listening to his explanation. On a closer inspection, she was also holding onto the bottle of hot sauce. Looking at his side to see the bottle gone.

'What the. How she do that?' now it was his turn to be shocked by disbelief.

Finishing, she saw the man before stare at her with his mouth open. She could see why. Juice from the meat as well as the sauce dripped from her chin. The only reasonable course of action is to blush and blush she did. Taking a napkin offered to her by the cook she began to wipe her face of any trace.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be seen like s a slob". She put her head down and made herself look small.

Only one word came to his mind when he saw the seen, 'cute'. "Don't worry about it. I'm just glad that you enjoyed my cooking so much."

With her face determined she stood up and walked in front of the stranger before her. Pulling herself together, Liliane raised the bottle in her hand and asked a crucial question that could mean life and death for her.

"Tell me, where can I purchase this?"

Marcel blinked his eyes, today seemed full of surprises. To bad he couldn't tell her where he got it.

"I'm afraid to say that you can't buy it anywhere. It's home made." He was sorry to let her hopes down.

She was disappointed an it showed on her face and slumped shoulders. She was looking forward to have this hot sauce as he called it. It would make her bland meal more savory.

He knew he shouldn't but, he didn't like to see someone sad. He suppose if he sold her a few bottles it would work out.

"Tell you what, I have a some bottles already prepared, how about I sell you a few."

She could not believe it, there was still a chance. "Yes. Yes. Yes. Please".

He smile to see her enthusiasm. "Alright, how will you pay?"

Liliane quickly reached into the neck of her tunic where she unzipped her skin tight suit partially before pulling a small soft leather pouch with a drawstring. Opening it, the sound of coins jingled as she searched for the coin she was looking for. Taking a single gold coin, she presented it to the black haired man.

"How much can I buy with this?" Holding the coin, she waited for him.

Taking the coin in his hand, he felt its weight and texture. It was pure gold with about a gram of weight to it. Doing some calculations in his head, he proceeded to tell her.

"With this you can buy ten bottles. Is that alright?"

Alright. Alright. That was more than she expected. She thought that it would only buy her one bottle of the glorious liquid. Ten, she could not even begin to think of the possibilities. Her surprise caused her to just nod in agreement.

Flipping the coin high into the air, Marcel let the woman's eyes follow it while he took out his stash.

When the coin returned to the new owners hand, the brunette saw a crate filled with similar bottles that she was holding. 'Where did those come from?' She snapped out of her thoughts.

Taking ten bottles, he produced a leather satchel from behind the rock he was sitting and place them inside with care. He handed her the bag with some final words.

"Here you go. Now if you don't mind I would like to be left alone to finish cooking if you please." Standing up he went to finish his business.

Holding the bag, she felt the weight of her purchase. Catching what he said, she gave her goodbye and left the clearing, full and happier than when she woke up. It was staring to look like a good day.

**-xxx-**

Through her journey back to the castle she wondered a few things. One was how the crate appear in less than a second and two, what was he doing cooking in the middle of the forest. If she saw him next time, she would ask.

Reaching the kitchen to see the cook just preparing the ingredients for lunch, she couldn't help to have a smile on her face. Maybe she could try her buy on the food to see if it would make it better.

**-xxx-**

Back in the forest, Marcel was just finishing up. He placed several dishes and two pots on the a silver plater along with smaller items for the tea as well as utensils. During this, he couldn't help but to think about the odd woman that came by. He would have thought that a strange man in the forest, wearing mostly black, cooking would raise more questions.

"Oh well, at least I caught a glimpse of her chest. Small and soft. Not bad.

'Marcel, I need you'.

"Just in time". With a smile he put away the tray and teleported to his masters location.

* * *

**A/N**

**Hope you enjoyed it.**

**Please review. It makes it easier to write if people give hints to make a story better.**

**Cheers**


	4. The Day

**Royal Companion**

* * *

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Familiar of Zero**

* * *

Chapter 3: The Day

_"I don't know who you are and I don't know your intentions but one thing is clear, I will not let you harm her Majesty!"_

_-Agnes_

* * *

The streets were filled with the sound of life as people went on about their business either tending to stalls or shops, shopping for there needs or simply walking around, enjoying the ambiance. Horse drawn carts crowded the narrow passages, waiting for people to move out of the way so they could move on to their destinations to sell the cargo they were carrying.

A woman wearing a simple short sleeve gray cotton dress, walked amongst the crowd looking at the many sights, hearing many sounds and smelling the many aromas. Unfortunately, the pleasant smells were also mixed in with the scent of unwashed burly men, carrying heavy barrels to a local bar/restaurant called 'The Charming Faerie Inn'. Deciding to move to a better location, the woman continued through the crowds, her purple haired ponytail swung with each step she took. Black flats fell lightly on the cobble stone path silent and unheard by the ambient noise. Her clear blue eyes taking in all the details of her surroundings like the buildings, people, stalls and food.

Yes, Henrietta was having a good day, experiencing what with her normal life she could not.

Freedom.

Finding herself a crape's stand, it was easy to see, by the look on her face, that she wanted to try them. She wanted to see how Marcel's pancakes compared to some of Tristain's finest. Asking for one of the pastries, she waited while looking out at the crowds. Its people buying whatever crossed their eyes. While she thought back at how she came to be here, dressed like a peasant with only a small pouch of gold to get her through the rest of the day.

**-xxx Hours Earlier xxx-**

"I just want to be free from this gilded cage." Henrietta told her new friend. Her voice was small that he could barely hear her, she slumped in her chair and if her dress wasn't so puffy, she would of pull her knees into her chest.

All the things they've discussed painted a clear picture. She was still just a little girl barely learning to live and was already stuck with responsibility. In the future, this will harden her into a fierce woman, but it might kill her heart little by little until she becomes heartless, even towards her subjects. That was something that he will not allow.

Marcel looked at Henrietta's face, she was currently looking down at the ground while balling her dress in her fist. Walking towards the sad woman, he knelt before her, reaching for her hands and taking them into his.

She noticed this gesture, looking into his concerned eyes. Not a day and he was worried for her. Not a day and he knew that she hurt inside. A true friend in the making.

"I don't know what your life is like at this moment, and I can't imagine what it is like for you to be the symbol of your country, but I won't sit by and just let you suffer." Squeezing her hands a little tighter, he continued. "You summoned me to be your friend, correct?"

"Yes." Henrietta said, nodding while doing so.

"Then as a friend, I will give you fun times where you can be you. You won't have to be formal with me. Tell me what you want and I'll do it, within reason, understand. I will be your friend and servant, someone who will listen and do things for you."

"Do you really mean that?" Her face lit with hope tears threatened to fall.

He smiled at her "Of course, I don't like to see a person sad, even more, a slave to a birthright they did not wished for."

Hearing his words she could no longer hold back the tears. Her tears fell in waves, one of the brightest smiles appear on her face. She was no longer alone. Doing something she wouldn't do in the presence of others, she jump at the man, crashing into him with her full weight.

Marcel was surprised by her action, if it wasn't for years of training he would have fallen to the floor along with his charge. Feeling her shiver, he could see what it meant to the woman in his arms to have human contact.

Her sobbing continue as she gripped her familiar tighter with him rubbing her back, trying to calm her.

After a while, the young princess stopped to look at the man who's arms she was in. Releasing from each others embrace. Her eyes were red and puffy, her cheeks were tear streaked. The front of her dress was a bit crumpled and wet from her tears, which to her was indecent. As a princess, she must always look presentable, which means the her dress must be pristine.

"I'm sorry, I must look like a mess." She was embarrass to be caught in such a state of emotion.

"Don't worry about it." His hand went to the top of her head, giving it a light pat. "When one bottles up their emotions, something will come and open the flood gates. It feels good to cry till your empty, then you can fill the space with happiness."

A comfortable silence fell between them, neither trying to get up from their position on the floor. It wasn't long before Henrietta got up from the floor, trying to smooth out the wrinkles on her dress. Her familiar came behind her holding a moist towel offering it to her. Taking it from him, she wiped her face, almost erasing the evidence that she was crying, only leaving some red spots on her cheeks.

"Its such a nice day, we should go take a walk." She said out loud to no one in particular. It seemed like such a waste to spend a rare day like today sitting around the castle with nothing much to do. 'Perhaps we could go to the Capital and sight see, maybe do some shopping.' She smiled at the thought.

Like a regular girl, looking at the clothing, choosing what she wanted. In an after thought, she frowned at the idea. The day was already half over and she wouldn't be able to go alone. Her guards would follow her around preventing any others from even getting close to her, meaning that if she wanted to converse with the towns people, they would get in front of her.

Marcel saw her face go through many emotions from happiness to sadness then frustration. He wasn't a mind reader so he decide to ask what was wrong. "Is something the matter?"

Henrietta looked at her servant seeing the concern in his features. "Its just..." With a sigh she continued. "Just that if I leave the castle, I would not be able to go anywhere alone. My guards would have to come with me to protect me. It would just be an inconvenience if I wanted to buy anything from a store or talk to anyone on the street."

"They would clear an entire establishment just for you, correct" If his suspicions were correct it was a classic maneuver of guards doing their duty.

"Precisely. It has happened before and I do not wish to make a scene."

Walking towards the table, he began to send the dishes away until he could wash them later. "You know, if that happens in every shop you enter, some might see you as a bully. A princess using her power to get what she wants." Finishing the cleaning, he inspected the table cloth for any stains, seeing none, he continued with the conversation. "What do you think of that?"

"I don't like it, but they say it's for my own protection. Just in case an assassin is hiding amongst other patrons."

"I understand that's what they want but, it would only make you a bigger target since only the princess will be sitting down and her guards are standing."

"That's true". She had to agree with what he said. "Still it's not like I can leave in secret, someone is bound to spot me leaving the castle alone." She looked down at the floor sighing, the life of a royal is sure full of obstacles.

Marcel chuckled when she said that. Oh how much fun this stunt will bring. "So you want to leave unseen huh?"

Henrietta look at the man before him, she could see him grinning. What was he thinking? 'How could he get me...oh.' Seeing where he was going with it she to couldn't help but grin. That still beg the question, how could she mask her absence?

"How?" Was her question.

"I am glad you asked?" Was his answer and proceeded to whisper his plan.

**-xxx-**

Passing several guards in a fit of fury, no one wanted to stand in her way. Her eyes were set in a fierce scowl glaring at anyone and everyone that passed her by. Stopping a guard close to her room, Henrietta pulled him by the fabric of his collar to the side and told him, in what she believed was her most irritated voice, to tell all that come to see her that unless the castle is burning or a war has broken out to not bother her. Slamming her door for good measure, locking it, she plopped down on the bed with a sigh.

Marcel appeared a few moments later, rising from the floor, trying to hold in his laughter. "That, was a beautiful performance."

Looking toward the black haired man, she couldn't help but smile at what she had done. "I hope I was convincing enough so they would leave me be."

"You were. Didn't you see the fear in his eyes?" Finally letting out a chuckle.

She sat up from her bed. Frowning. "I didn't wish to frighten them."

"Yeah, well fear is a good motivator." He reached into the ripple of his **Dimensional Shift **and began to pull out several items. First was a bundle of fabric which he unfurled reveling a simple gray cotton dress. The next item was a pair of black flats, simple shoes that were comfortable. The last item was a long black ribbon.

Henrietta stood from her bed and removed her mantle, draping it on a chair by her bed. She then began to unzip her dress, letting it fall to the floor. Stepping out of it, she sat on her bed, pulling of her shoes then her stockings. Standing up once more, she removed her garter-belt placing it on the bed along with her stocking. Last item to go was the silver tiara on her head. All that was left on her were her white lace panties.

Walking over to the semi naked woman, he gave her the dress along with the shoes. "Here, these should do just fine."

With a thanks, she wasted no time getting dressed. When she finished, she looked at her self in a full length mirror inspecting her current look. It was different, simple and clean. She liked it. She looked nothing like a princess, just another woman you would find on the streets. Her servant came behind her and pulled her hair back into a ponytail using the black ribbon in his hands to secure it. With that done, her transformation was complete.

"Not bad, I doubt anyone would recognize you without your crown. All they will see is a young woman walking the streets." His voice was filled with pride at the simple yet possibly effective disguise.

"I suppose they will but, what if they do recognize me"? She wondered if it would really be simple to fool all who have seen her before. 'Who knows.'

"You believe that a princess would be wearing the clothing of a commoner, walking among said commoners, and without her guard no less. Not likely". He grabbed Henrietta's discarded clothing, placing it on the chair along with her items to keep everything nice and neat.

"I suppose not." Looking out the window she could see the sun was past the half point and it would be two hours by horse so if they were going to leave, they should do it now. "We should go. It will take time to reach the town from here and I would like to enjoy my time there as much as possible."

Looking out the window himself, he could see the expanse of land between here and the speck in the distance he believe to be their destination. "Is that the town in the distance?" He asked, pointing to the speck.

Having to squint at what he was pointing at, she saw the Capital in the distance. "Yes, that's Tristain Capital, a town filled with many people and shops that also acts as a destination for the academy students on the day of Void."

With a nod, Marcel opened one of the many windows. He walked back to Henrietta. "If you want to get to town in good time I can use one of my more fun abilities to get you there faster". A smile spread from cheek to cheek.

Normally she would question anything she didn't know but with him it would just be another surprise. "I don't see why not, learning from your past actions you probably have a method for fast travel".

Standing in front of the purple haired princess, he told Henrietta to close her eyes. When she did, his smile turned into a big grin in which small fangs gleamed. He grab Henrietta by the scruff of her dress, taking a half step back, he swung her three times in a circle then threw her hard out the window.

Henrietta felt when Marcel grabbed her dress. The action cause her chest to compress accentuating the size of her breast. She was about to open her eyes and frown at his actions when she felt her feet leave the ground with him swinging her round and round. On the third round she felt him release her, launching her out the window. She felt the friction of the wind whip around her as she travel through the air at high speeds.

Marcel laughed hard when he heard her fading screams in the distance. Crouching on the floor, the sound of electricity began to crackle as lightning began to coat his body with his hair taking on the silver color. With a final chuckle, he launched himself out the window.

**-xxx-**

Henrietta's screaming was heard from quite a distance. In the mere moment it took her to reach the outskirts of the capital, she was contemplating if Marcel was insane. Truly, no sane person would throw another out the window.

It was no more than a few seconds that the feeling ended. When she felt her feet touch the ground, Henrietta decided to open her eyes to see what was happening. She was panting hard from the continuous scream.

"Oh my", were her only words. The look on her face was priceless.

She was standing at the entrance to the town. Looking into the sky, she could see the sun was still in the same position which could only mean one thing.

"How did you get us here so fast?" She didn't think that the travel was that fast. Probably the mortal terror made it short. Still it surprised her she was still in one piece.

"Come on now, do you think I would reveal all my secrets?" The ever present grin on his face told her he would let suffer a little longer for his amusement. He began to walk into town.

Noticing that her servant was walking away, she decided to enjoy this moment of freedom before it fades away. Her racing heart was barely calming down. She will get her answer if it's the last thing she'll do.

**-xxx-**

A scene, that has greeted her many times, stood before her. People were bustling through the streets, going on their day. Few people turn to look at her as she made her way down the streets, turning away not caring who she was. What was different from the other times was that she was not in her dress parading the streets. Instead, no one recognized her in her plain clothing. This was starting to be a good day.

Turning to speak with her companion, she could see that he was gone. "Marcel?," she asked empty space.

'Yes,' came a disembodied voice.

She was surprised for a moment but then she wondered were he went. 'Were are you?' Her voice sounded concerned.

'I am just going to wait here and look after you. This way you can enjoy yourself and still get the protection that you need'

'Wait, you mean that I'm going to be alone here?' Now she was worried. She had never been in town by herself. She thought that he would accompany her.

'Not alone completely, I just want you to enjoy the freedom to choose where you want to go. Do what you want and go enjoy yourself.' Cutting off the link, he left her to herself.

He was right. If she wanted walk where she wanted, she would have to start alone and get companions along the way. Taking a deep breath; she began her venture into the town, without the hindrance of anybody and by the Founder no one will mess this up for her.

**-xxx Present Time xxx-**

The vendor gave her the crape for which she paid for with a few silver coins she kept in a pouch between her breasts. The dress while comfortably snug, also stretched quite a bit and kept its shape quite well. This allowed her to reach inside for the coin pouch. The vendor didn't seem to mind since most women did the same.

Taking a bite, she reveled in the sweet, closing her eyes and smiling. Still, it proved that it was not quite as good as Marcel's pancakes.

'Why, Maybe Marcel knows?' Deciding to see if he knew, she called. 'Marcel' feeling her seal pulse she got an answer.

'Do you need something?' his voice was calm and relaxed. Where ever he was, he seemed happy.

'Yes. I wanted to ask, why is this crape not as good as your pancakes?'

'Simple, a vendor on the street sells for profit. They buy the ingredients and make the item. Then they calculate the price based on how much they spend and a reasonable profit to be made.' Waiting for it to sink in, he continued. 'I made them to simply eat and did not skimp out on anything. I'm sure if you go to an expensive restaurant, they will have the same food but better tasting.' After those words, silence roamed once again.

Satisfied, she continued to walk through the streets until she came to, what she believed, was a poorer part of town. The buildings weren't as nice as the main streets and the shops seemed in pretty bad shape with little to no business. The people here didn't seem friendly if the looks of irritation in their eyes and occasional grunts were any indication. There were drunks every few meters along the side of the street.

Deciding that it was not good to stay any longer, she turned around and went the way she came. At least, that was the intention. In front of her were two men, dirtied and reeked of alcohol, blocking her way. Saying a polite excuse me and trying pass them on the side. She squeaked in surprise as one of them grabbed her arm in a firm grip and spun her around to face them, dropping the rest of her treat in the process.

"Unhand me at once", she exclaimed as she tried to get out of his grip.

Gripping harder that made the purple haired woman wince, he pulled hard making said woman trip falling to the floor.

"Well look what we have here. A pretty girl walking here alone. You lost, sweetie." His breath stank even more with every word he spoke.

"I am not lost, I was just leaving." Henrietta grunted as she continued to struggle. "Now unhand me."

"Come now, why don't we just go some place quite to enjoy ourselves, right Jake?" Turning around to address his friend, the man couldn't see him anywhere. "Jake, where'd you go?"

Silence seemed to overtake the place. No one made a noise and that caused the brute of a man to look around. Looking at the woman in his hand, he could see that she was starring beyond him. Turning around his face was met by a fist that seem to weigh several kilos. His face contorted and ripple from the impact. For a man his size it would just not bother him as much but, the impact sent him skidding and rolling far from his original mark.

Henrietta looked up to see Marcel standing above her holding out his hand. Taking it she was pulled up to her feet and dusted off by him. She wondered were he came from and how he managed to punch a man taller and, what she believed, stronger than him. In her confusing she failed to realize she already knew those answers.

Marcel for his part was not to happy at the moment. He turns his head for one second and his charge is being assaulted by a man clearly not thinking strait with the intention of forcing himself on her. At the moment he was not going to fight since he was drunk. If he was sober, well, than there was a problem.

"We should go somewhere else." Taking Henrietta's hand, he guided her out of the slum and back onto the busy main street.

The young woman was speechless, still thinking over what happened. If her guards were around, they would not let anyone touch her. The assailant would be injured and put in prison. It had happened before. Perfect execution from her guards.

This, on the other hand, was crude. She was already bruising from were the man gripped her. The man in question was only injured but free. Normally anyone would not stand this and demand there to be more severe actions. Yes anyone else.

She was not just anyone. She was a person who wanted things done as peacefully as possible. This situation did just that. True a person got hurt but that was it. She was happy at the situation. If they weren't drunk she suspected Marcel would have done worse. Just how much was currently beyond her.

She was guided to a bench in a pretty deserted square of town. Her friend was concerned and it show on his face. He took her arm gently, inspecting for injuries.

He could see a bit of purple already showing. Looking around to make sure no one was looking, he took his index finger, tapping the middle of her forehead sending a bit of his power through her body. It was instant that the progress of her bruises stopped and her skin started to revert back to its milky white color.

Henrietta felt the rush of energy through her the instant he tapped her forehead. The pain in her arm went away with it. The impact wasn't hard but it did leave an itchy spot.

"Is this how you healed me before?" She said, rubbing her forehead.

Letting go of her arm, he looked away from her. "Pretty much, although I used much more energy than this since the damage was greater back then".

With him looking away from her, Henrietta could see that he was ashamed at what had happened. "You don't have to feel sorry for yourself." What she said made him turned. He raised an eyebrow, confused at why she said that. "It was my fault, I ended in a place with ruffians and got hurt because of it."

'Oh, so that was it.' She thought that when he turned from her, he was feeling sorry for himself because she got hurt and he wasn't there. "That wasn't it. I was just looking at the female knight pointing a gun at me." He was serious when he said that.

"What?" Henrietta was confused. Looking to where he was staring before, she could see that indeed a female knight was pointing a gun at him. The knight was not just any knight, it was the captain of the Musketeer Knight It was Agnes Chevalier de Milan.

Her eyes widened, her mind ran through quick scenarios on why she was here. It didn't make sense since she was normally training and rarely left the castle by herself, unless was escorting her.

The sound of a gunshot rang through the air, pulling her out of her thoughts. The world seemed to go into slow motion as the bullet traveled through the air, ripping into Marcel's right shoulder. When she saw the blood she froze. She saw her familiar fall back.

'Oh no'

**-xxx-**

**Agnes: Ten Minutes Earlier**

Nothing. She found nothing in the immense collection of books and records housed in the library at the castle. Correction. She found printed lies used to hide the true nature of the slaughter of her home. Words spoken by those who ordered the burning of her fellow countrymen.

Agnes had just left the stable that kept her horse safe while she was on her way to see the supplier for the arms that all the musketeers had. It seemed the woman responsible for ordering the black power, had been sick in her room and couldn't make it. If Michelle didn't leave so early she would have asked her to do it.

Having nothing to do at the time, except wishing to tear the library apart for with holding the information that she needed, she decided that it would be a good way to calm down and think of her next move.

Walking down the street she made it to a shop in a slum street away from the city. As she rounded the corner she saw two men, one on the side of the street unconscious another close to her holding his face squirming. At the other end of the street, another black haired man was pulling a purple haired woman behind him.

Her eyes widened for an instant. Only two people had purple hair and only one had the shade that the woman had. Her princess should have been back at the castle, in her room if the what the guards said was correct. It seemed she was still upset at having to be woken up and not being able to fall asleep again.

Just to be sure it wasn't her, she followed at a brisk pace keeping a bit of distance. She saw the black haired man sit the woman on a bench holding her arm. While he was doing this, from the corner of an alley, Agnes looked at the woman in the face. A gasp escaped her lips when she saw that indeed it was princess Henrietta.

'But how, she was suppose to be at the castle.' Looking closer she saw the man _hit _the Princess on the forehead. She had to act quick or he might hurt her further. Taking out her pistol, she aimed it at the man.

In the next seconds everything passed as a blur. He turned to look at her with a serious look in his eyes then turn back at the Princess. Before he could take her as a hostage she fired. The shot rang and tore into the black haired man's shoulder knocking him away from the woman.

**-xxx-**

**Present Time**

Running to her princess, she saw that she was shocked at what happened. She inspected her for injuries and saw a bruise forming on her arm. How could she let this happen. More importantly why was she here?

She was about to look for the culprit when she felt a sharp pain on the back of her neck falling to the floor unconscious.

Standing up, his right arm hung loosely, the blood from his wound trailing in fine lines down past his fingers and dripping to the floor. Walking over the stunned princess, he knelt down to face level.

"Are you alright?" he asked. Concerned the bullet might have injured her as well.

His words brought her out of her shock. She saw the dripping blood, making her react.

"Oh goodness, your bleeding". She was about to reach for him when he stopped her with a raise of a hand.

"Don't worry, the shot only grazed me. I'll be fine in a bit". Wiggling his fingers showed there was no serious damage.

"Still I should use healing magic to stop the blood". She was about to reach for her wand when his hand stopped her once more.

"Don't. Like I said it won't be long until I heal from this flesh wound". His serious look meant every word.

Henrietta was about to speak again when she heard metallic sounds getting closer. She knew the guards heard the gunshot and would come to investigate soon. Trying to think of a way out, she asked Marcel for any ideas.

"We can't be seen. How will we be able to leave unnoticed". She was very close to panicking.

Not wasting time, Marcel grab the unconscious captain under his good arm. "Grab onto my shoulder".

Not thinking twice, Henrietta did as she was told. A familiar feeling washed over her as her body turn dark and soon began to sink into the ground. Before they disappeared, she cursed her luck.

"A good day ruined". Her body vanished with a deep frown on her face.

**-xxx-**

A groan was the first sound the blond captain made. Her neck was stiff, with just the slightest movement of her head and a sharp pain would shoot between her head and her spine.

Sitting up, she looked around to see she was in a room with plain granite walls sparse of any decorations. In one of the walls was a dresser. On another was a small table with a bowl of water and a washcloth on the side. Next to the table was her sword, resting against the wall. A door was located in front of her.

Rubbing her neck hopping to ease the soreness, her arm bumped into something soft. Turning to see what was beside her, her eyes widened to see the princess next to her. The woman was sleeping peacefully if the slow rising of her cheat was any indication.

She was about to wake the sleeping woman when she heard the sound of the door nob turning. Falling back to the bed to make herself seem like she was still asleep. Slowing down her breathing she feigned sleep.

The door opened to reveal a head of silver tinted hair before it changed to black. Marcel was holding a small box of herbs, hoping to used the to heal the blond knight. He honestly didn't want to used his power. It would just be mistaken for magic and that could lead to more trouble.

Placing the box on the table, he turned to see the two women, his master and the knight, sleeping quite peacefully. Although the woman called Agnes, the name Henrietta called her seemed to be frowning. To him it was kind of cute. It also looked like she was pouting

"Must be a dream she doesn't like'. His voice was but a whisper. Unheard by either woman.

Going to the dresser, he browsed through its contents finding what he was looking for. Pulling a black shirt identical to the one he was wearing, he decided to change while he had time.

Agnes cracked one of her emerald eyes, hoping to see who was that came in. What she saw was the same man that assaulted the princess in the town. She could see him looking through the dresser and pulling out a black shirt. He began to pull the shirt he was wearing over his he and discarded to the floor. Both her eyes opened wide at the sight before her.

The man's back was covered in many scars. Some seemed to be slashes from knives or swords, others were punctures from something smaller than a musket round. Above the middle of his back was a tattoo design that looked like small black wings originating from his shoulder blades out and wrapping around his arms. With scars like that, it would easily make him seem like a veteran of many wars. It didn't make sense, he didn't look any older than 25 years old.

Shaking her head from thoughts, she sprung into action. Jumping from the bed, she raced to her sword while the man was busy putting on the new shirt. If she could get the first strike, maybe she could disable him before he has anytime to react. It was cowardly to strike when someone's back was turned but it was the only way to ensure that she and the princess would have a chance to escape from were ever they were.

Agnes reached the sword in a few steps. Not stopping her stride, she drew her sword swiftly and smoothly aiming at the right shoulder were she suspected the musket round hit. Time seemed to slow for the blond knight as she felt her breathing slow. Her heart beat sounded louder in her ears with the rhythmic thumping mimicking every step she took. Her eyes open to a clarity unseen before. In the time it took for her to cross the floor and get in position behind her target, said target had not move but a centimeter.

Her sword was close now, it would only be a moment and she could escape with the princess.

_**Clink**_

The sound of metal hitting metal was followed by an abrupt stop. The blade stop quite sharply that her hand stung as the leather of her handle dug into her palms. Looking at what stopped her steel, her eyes widen at the sight before her. The man held a sword in his left hand. The blunt edge rested over his shoulder and collarbone, while his right was busy pushing through the sleeve. Her entire weight was in the strike and it was stopped. She was to occupied with the thought that she failed to see Marcel move.

He spun around keeping the sword in his hand in complete contact with the sword of his opponent just before he was in optimal position to strike back. When he got sufficient footing, he put force into a horizontal slash making the woman's sword flush with her body before launching her back several meters.

Agnes slid across the floor before stopping at the foot of the bed. The culprit finish putting on the shirt with a relaxed pace taking a stance once finished. She had never felt anything like the force that pushed her away. It was like getting hit by a torrent of water.

Now that she had distance, she could see the sword completely. It was about a meter and a half long, single sided with a strange design running along the sharp edge. A silver cross guard and black cord on the handle protected the hand and a black chain with a silver pendant dangled from the end. His voice drew her from her observations.

"You should really analyze the situation before you go attacking people". He didn't seem upset, in fact his eyes were filled with curiosity. From what, no one seemed know.

Like the trained knight she was, Agnes responded the only way she could. "I don't know who you are and I don't know your intentions but one thing is clear, I will not let you harm her Majesty!"

He didn't seemed fazed by her statement. Like he expected her to say it. "What makes you think that I will harm Henrietta? Have I done anything that would warrant your current aggression?"

What she said almost caught her off guard. 'He speaks like he's familiar with her Majesty'. It was not a possibility. If it was, the princess would have inform her guard that she was leaving the castle with a man she knew. Also she would not let herself get hit in the head. No this man is an enemy. He must be trying to kidnap the princess.

Not taking any chances, Agnes raised her sword. Her new stance brought both hands on the handle for maximum grip and power. Her sword held in front of her point up.

Marcel switch his sword over to his right hand before taking a stance himself. He was calm. Not a sign of emotion or bead of sweat. He held his sword in one hand high above his head with the tip pointing the ground.

No one made a move for a while. They both seemed to sized each other. Agnes continued to scowl while Marcel was just emotionless, patient and unmoving. She didn't seem to be as patient so she just moved first.

Agnes charged at full speed, closing the short distance already between them. Putting all her weight behind the swing her sword, it arched over her head. Marcel was not idle. He waited for her to move before placing his own sword above his head. The attack came closer. It sliced through the air perfectly with little sound. The contact came with the same outcome. Agnes felt the sting again in her hands as her sword stopped suddenly.

Jumping back, she could still see the emotionless face of her opponent. The fact that he blocked her strike with little effort, not to mention he didn't budge, spoke well of his physical strength. She was about to attack again when she heard a sound coming from her sword. She was surprised to see her sword riddled with cracks originating from the point of impact and currently spreading along its length. When she touched it gingerly with her finger, it shattered into a thousand pieces.

Letting his sword fall from his grip, it disappeared into the floor. Marcel walked back to the closet, putting away the dirty shirt.

Agnes just stared at the broken sword not saying anything. Her eyes where wide with a realization. If her sword can break from just the impact, what would happen to her if he had swung back at full force.

While Agnes and Marcel were doing their own things, Henrietta took this time to wake up. It had been a restful nap since the earlier events left her tired. A good day turned into a string of bad luck.

First she ended being harassed by drunks. Next her captain found her somehow and shot her familiar. Then she finds out her familiar can heal fast without the aid of water magic. That last one wasn't so bad. At least she knew he would be okay in bad situations.

The sound of metal breaking reached her ears. Looking towards the source of the sound, she could see Marcel closing a dresser and her captain standing still, staring at the handle of her broken sword. She knew right away what had happened. Agnes attacked Marcel and he defended himself. She didn't know how but she started to believe he was not human.

Getting off the bed and putting on her flats, she walked to the stunned woman. Placing a hand on her shoulder, bringing attention to herself, she said something that would truly hurt a friend.

"It seems that my first impressions of you were misguided. You are not the person I believed you were". Her tone spoke of disappointment. Why wouldn't she be. This woman had just shot her familiar not to long ago, thankfully he didn't die. Now she was still wanting to kill him. It's even worse than when she had her regular outings with a whole squad. "I am truly disappointed in you".

Hearing Henrietta speak, Agnes turned to face her, confused at her words. Why was she disappointed? Was it because she couldn't defeat her opponent. She was sure that her excellent service to her Majesty was something to be proud about.

Letting go of her shoulder, Henrietta addressed the man before them. "Marcel, are you okay"? She was concerned not with his health but in his belief that he would not be attacked by all that saw him with her.

Marcel turned around with a smile on his face. It was not a fake smile that many would put to sooth when someone was concerned. "I'm good, just that this woman here doesn't seem to like me much".

"Yes, it starting to look that same way to me to".

The fact that the man, apparently called Marcel, was not being hostel and her Majesty was also relaxed meant one thing. They knew each other.

"Your Majesty, who is this man"? She wanted to know who he was. She needed to know.

Henrietta sighed, her familiar was now exposed. She could lie and say that he was a friend but that would cause a scandal since he was clearly not a noble. Even if he used his powers, which she was starting to suspect were not of the elemental variety, it would still show that he was a foreigner. Knowing that the truth was better, she decided to tell the blond captain. She could always swear her to secrecy.

"Very well Captain but first", Henrietta stopped briefly to look at Agnes right in the eye with her most serious look. "You must swear to me that no one else, without my consent, will hear what will be said. Is that clear".

Agnes seemed to be on auto pilot. Hearing the words 'swear to' triggered something inside her that made her take a knee without even thinking. The was her princess about to divulge a secret that she wished no one else to know

"Of course your Majesty. I will not tell soul".

"Good. As for the identity of this man". She took a deep breath. "He is my familiar". She said it with confidence and pride. She could have said friend but she didn't know if they were there yet.

Agnes was floored. She expected other things like a visiting noble or a man helping her out. Hell even a lover. All these reasons brought the realization that she would have committed a grave mistake that would have imprisoned her. The fact that he was a familiar, even a human one, meant that his death would be her own. A Mage was tied to a familiar with a strong bond. This knowledge came from the library since she needed to know all about the mages in order to fight them. If she killed him, her Majesty would probably have her executed. If she was lucky, imprisoned.

One thing was for sure. This man was not human. No human could be a familiar. He was strong to the point that a sword in his hands could break another. The fact that his sword was swallowed by the ground meant that he had power.

She had to be careful around him.

* * *

**A/N**

**Well that ends the introductory chapters. Next time, a mission for Agnes with Marcel tagging along. Henrietta will take initiative at doing what she wants without anyone stopping her.**

**Also, I will be posting the first chapter of a Naruto/Familiar of Zero crossover that I wrote before I even started Royal Companion. I hope it is well received.**

**-Cheers**


End file.
